Constitution Day comes and goes with little notice

Today is Constitution Day, but it won’t formally be observed until tomorrow. Why that is I don’t know, because few people observe it at all. It isn’t even listed on my calendar.

There are no fireworks as there are on Independence Day, no proclamations, no picnics and no holiday sales. Yet Constitution Week should be observed with every bit of pomp that accompanies other celebrations.

On Sept. 17, 1787, the Constitution was signed as dictated by Article VII. The document did not become binding however until it was ratified by nine of the 13 states.

It wasn’t until Dec. 7 that it finally became the law of the land. Talk about government moving slowly, politicians were no quicker 230 years ago than they are now.

Not only is Constitution Day ignored by many folks, one of the most important men in the creation of the framework for the United States is also overlooked. Everyone has heard of George Washington and Benjamin Franklin, but how many people know George Mason?

Mason was not only involved in the Revolution, he is partly responsible for the Bill of Rights which we hold so dear. James Madison is credited with the creation of the Amendments that protect our individual rights from governmental regulations, but he had help from Mason.

Mason was a delegate from Virginia to the Constitutional Convention. He had a lot to do with the framing of our Constitution, but he was a strict anti-federalist. He would not sign the proposed document because it did not specifically grant States’ and individuals’ rights.

So adamant was he about the need to limit government intervention, that he famously stated, "I would sooner chop off my right hand than put it to the Constitution as it now stands."

He had written the Virginia Declaration of Rights in 1776, more than 10 years earlier. It was this document that provided the groundwork for the first 10 amendments of the Constitution. Eventually, the Federalists were convinced to add the changes and thus we have our Constitution as we know it today.

You would think the name of George Mason would be as well-known as Thomas Jefferson or Patrick Henry. The reason that it isn’t is that he, unlike many politicians, stayed out of the limelight. He didn’t want public acclamation. He was just a true patriot.

Our Constitution may be 230 years old today, but it is as important as it was in 1787. It continues to be the structure on which all government decisions should be made.

So, if you are reading this say a small thank you to George Mason for freedom of the press. If you attended church this morning, it is because you have the liberty to choose your religion. And if you keep a gun to protect yourself, it is because George Mason continued to rail against the Constitution until the rights of individuals were recognized.